Yearly Archives: 2022

Prompt: How does the theme of the Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” relate to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour?” The theme of Emily Dickinson’s poem ” The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour” by showing how in the poem the wife laments on how she is drowning in her marriage and cannot find herself, Mrs. Mallard is grief-stricken at first with her husband’s death but realizes she is free to do what she needs like the waves have calmed down and she can finally breathe again. In that time era, most women’s entire lives are dedicated to their husbands and domestic life. For Mrs. Mallard to finally enjoy her life it’s like her husband’s death bought out life in her in a way.

The theme in “The Wife” and “The Story of an Hour” relate to each other of the women wanting to have an internal sense of being good enough and worthy of love. Both poems shine the light on how yes in society it is respectable if you’re married but being a wife can cause suffering, especially for the women in both poems who value their independence life. In The Wife, “If ought She missed in Her new Day, Of Amplitude, or Awe Or first Prospective Or the Gold In using, wear away,” analyzes the women’s new married life she can’t express the old life she misses when she was independent, using the world “Amplitude” to show the change she’s going through. Her married life has more responsibilities and pressure she may not be able to handle. In The Story of an Hour, when Mrs. Mallard finds out about her husband’s death she says “She said it over and over under her breath: ‘free, free, free!” this tells us that she’s discontent with her husband and is a benefit to her being free now. Usually, when someone finds out about the passing of someone they love, their first reaction would be to become emotional and ask questions but Mrs. Mallard just sits motionless on her chair and doesn’t seem to be phased by it, opening her arms means she’s comfortable now. In both poems, the women will have a new journey of them being independent and don’t have to worry about the pressure marriage can bring.

During an earlier time period, women were not on equal footing with men. The Story Of An Hour by Kate Chopin and The Wife by Emily Dickinson relate heavily to this theme since they both address the unhappiness of the oppressed woman. At the time, a woman’s main goal was to find a husband and sustain a family. In more cases than not, the wife would wind up miserable and emotionally suppressed. Mrs. Mallard from the Story Of An Hour suffered the same fate up until her husband’s death which is when she had finally realized what she had been missing for all those years. She briefly shares her thoughts in this quote: “When she abandoned herself a little whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under her breath: free, free, free! The vacant stare and the look of terror that had followed it went from her eyes “.  On a more imaginative note, the poem, The Wife, by Emily Dickinson also alludes to the unfortunate wife’s sacrifice to her husband and family. Laying out the imagery, Emily wrote: (referring to the wife’s depression) “It lay unmentioned, as the sea Develops pearl and weed,” To me this evokes a deep, sinking feeling as mentioning the sea is synonymous with depth. Seemingly, nobody knows about the troubles that come in upholding entire families and nobody cares. I believe both of the characters I mentioned were emotionally, and at some points physically, stuck in pits of desperation as they went completely unnoticed.

A common theme between the two readings is a woman wanting to be released from their husbands. However, another theme that also came to mind is what it means for a woman who desires of finding her own identity and self-worth in the world. To be able to exist as her own person without the constraints of societal pressure. To be more than whatever men tell women to be and seek out opportunities. Lines 8-9 from Emily Dickinson’s The Wife “It lay unmentioned, as the sea, develops pearl and weed.” and the line from Story of An Hour- “Go away. I am not making myself ill. No; she was drinking in the very elixir of life through that open window.” Both resonate with the idea of starting a new chapter and embarking on a personal journey to discovering oneself. The “sea” that the wife mentions could be interpreted as her husband who “develops pearl and weed” – with “Pearl” meaning a dream or something similar and “weed” being like a seed of doubt planted by the husband. While the line “she was drinking in the very elixir of life through that open window” could symbolize that nothing is “wrong” with her and that the “elixir of life” is really her finally opening her eyes and take in the realization that now she no longer needs to grieve for her dead husband. That she’s taken in the sights and beauty of her surroundings which inspire her to have a new outlook on her life.  

The poem “The Wife,” written by Emily Dickson, expresses what it represents to get married; when a woman becomes a wife, she losses her independence and identity, as indicated when the author says, “dropped the playthings of her life” to carry out wife duties as “his requirement.” Metaphoric words such as “pearl” and “weed” describe marriage elements. She needs to be submissive and respectful to hold the “Wife” title as her new identity. The conventional practice of a wife was to please their husband because they belonged to men’s property. That was a reality for a married woman during 19 century. Similarly, the narration of “Story of an hour?” by Kate Chopin contributes to the topic of marriage. When Mrs. Mallard finds out that his husband is dead, she starts crying because of his abandonment but quickly realizes that his husband’s death means freedom. Her moment of enlightenment, staring at the window, changed Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state from sadness to relief, empowerment, and independence. The narrator whispers, “Free! Body and soul free!” to dictate her coming years. Even though the protagonist died at the end of the story when she found out her husband was not dead, the moment of imagining her life as independent was already a victory.

The Story of an Hour was very interesting to read. It was by far the most interesting and I think it is relatable in some sort away. I think we can see that although Mrs. Mallard received the tragic news of her husband dying. She took it well unlike others. In the poem, The Wife, it says “ …dropped the playthings of her life to take the honorable role of woman and of wife” it seems like she chose to become a wife and left things that she liked behind. Just like Mrs. Mallard said “There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself.” I feel like she felt like she was tied down. Then in the second verse it says “If aught she missed in her new day of amplitude, or awe, Or first prospective, or the gold In using wore away” from what I understand is that they wondered what they were missing out on. I feel like they both describe being stuck in this position they chose to which was being a wife. She wasn’t happy.

These two pieces of literature “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin “The Wife ” by Emily Dickinson took place during the 19th century and show what women had to deal with. They had little freedom and had to do certain things because of their gender. The poem “The Wife ” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state as in the poem it shows a wife who has to give up what they like in order to do what people expected women to do. In “The Story of an Hour” Mrs. Mallard at first is sad at the news of her husband’s death. but later realizes that she no longer has to do what is expected of her and she now is free from expectations. Just like the poem Mrs. Mallard also once had to give her freedom away but not anymore. In the poem “The Wife” it says,” or the gold in using wore away.” The wife in the poem can’t use her gold anymore but Mrs. Mallard can now that she has her freedom back.

The first thing we notice is how Women are debilitated by adjusting to social jobs. We realize that Louise Mallard opposed her longing for opportunity through a functioning restraint of musings that disregarded the particulars of female family life. Sarah Penn likewise opposed normal driving forces by devoting herself to the perfection of household womanhood. This prompts a significant split between the outward life and the inward experience that is ruinous to oneself and to the encompassing society. In the Story of an Hour,” she utilizes various types of abstract components to unmistakably characterize her story and to demonstrate the majority of the implications behind what occurs in the story. There is a wide range of sorts of abstract components utilized in this short story however I accept the most significant one is incongruity. Incongruity is the thing that she used the most throughout the story right into the end which was by far what gave the story a grievous and unexpected completion. The unpredictable, uncertain tone of this segment of the story is inferred by the blended symbolism of “patches of blue sky appearing to a great extent through the mists”. Louise’s life is immediately dim, yet new alternatives are starting to first light (Evans). It’s the shrouded imagery like this in this story that uncovers the implications of everything and how she is truly feeling. Now perusers are confounded about whether he was a decent spouse or now however it unmistakably demonstrates that he was not an awful one since she is miserable. She simply doesn’t feel a similar route about him any longer so that is the reason she has an entirely different “free” life in front of her.

The theme of “The Wife” by Emily Dickinson is that of a woman’s duties by societies standards in the role of wife during that era and the sacrifices she is forced to endure. The poem is from the perspective of a woman who is trapped in her duties as a wife. In the first stanza, Ms. Dickinson speaks of the subject letting go of the things that bring her joy to conform to her role as a wife (“She rose to his requirement, Dropped the playthings of her life to take the honorable work of woman and of wife”) The second and third stanza to me touch on the woman reflecting on missing aspects of her former self/life (“if ought she missed…”) in this perceived higher station as a wife (“in her new day of amplitude and awe..”) and dealing with those emotions by burying them deep away within herself to never address (“It lay unmentioned as the sea develop pearl and weed…”). To me the relation I get between theme of The Wife and the emotional state of Mrs. Mallard’s in “The Story of an Hour” is that they are complete mirror opposites of one another, but they can be looked at as two halves of the same whole. The wife in Ms. Dickinson’s poem can be seen as Mrs. Mallard right before she got the news her husband had died. She feels trapped, bound by the rules of social culture. interpreting the poem, we can speculate she may have been experiencing depression, feeling caged in her societal station. Continuing this train of thought, Mrs. Mallard would represent the perceived emotional response the wife in Dickinson’s’ poem upon finding herself unchained from the shackles of her marriage would exhibit. The woman while saddened by her husband’s death because it […]

The theme of the Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” is closely related to “The Story of an Hour?” because both speak on the jobs or requirements of a wife when they go into marriage. Wives are expected to drop what they have in life and conform to what their husband wants. In the first section of the poem it says. “She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife.” This directly tells us that she would not have a life of her own anymore rather she is a sort of entity attached to her husband. Working for the husband and that being their only role. It relates to The story of an Hour because when she found out that her husband had been in an accident she was ecstatic that her husband had passed and had gained back her life only to find out that the news was false and the husband was still alive. The last section of the poem also mentions “It lay unmentioned, as the sea Develops pearl and weed,” The way I view this line is as long as a woman is married their own personality is buried deeper and develops weeds that shroud their own personality which is separate from their role as a “wife”

In their works, both Mrs. Mallard and Emily Dickinson discuss the notion of being a woman during highly patriarchal times. Living in a patriarchal society, both describe being married or associated with their man as suffocating and limiting. While Mrs. Mallard is relieved to hear of her husband’s death, Dickinson also sees being a wife’s role as limiting. It is apparent from her poem that she feels lost or depressed in her new role of being a wife; “If aught she missed in her new day. Of amplitude or awe. Or first prospective, or the gold. In using wore away, It lay unmentioned, as the sea. Develops pearl and weed,” In entering the life of marriage, the woman leaves all her ‘playthings’ behind to be a wife instead- it automatically connects to the sense of losing oneself. Therefore, both authors explore the powerful theme of womanhood and identity in patriarchal societies.

In the story “Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin, the wife Mrs. Mallard of course mourned her husbands death in such sorrow, weeping in her dear sisters arms for comfort of her loss. When she was finally alone in her room staring out the window she mourned a little more, until she felt a sense of freedom come over her. She no longer felt trapped in the hold that marriage has, especially at that point in time. the wife in “Story of An Hour” and the wife in the poem by Emily Dickinson “The Wife” correlate; “She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife.” Those lines are so powerful, because they emphasize on what being a wife meant, having to let go of your own sense of self to dedicate yourself to a man, a husband. Those words in “The Wife” is what Mrs. Mallard had to do in her marriage, once her husband had passed she knew she would be free from being dutiful to a person other than herself.

In the poem “the Wife” by Emily Dickson the theme is realization, the wife comes to a realization that to meet her husband requirements she will have to drop the enjoyments of her life and devote herself as a wife “it lay unmentioned, as the sea develops pearl and weed, but only to himself is known the fathoms they abide”  this theme relates to the emotional state of Mrs. Mallard in the story “the story of an Hour” by showing her coming to the realization after she found out her husband is dead that she’s finally free and able to live for herself.

The theme of the Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour” in the sense that the women have both lost their identity to a man. The first two parts of the poem talk about how the woman is dropping everything in her life to go and fulfill the duties of a wife and devote her life to a man. In the story “The Story of an Hour” the main character cries due to the news of her late husband, but not entirely for the reason of sadness. She is crying because she is happy that she gets to become an individual again. Many people in relationships might find themselves losing their identity to their partner, instead of keeping their own individuality. It can be tough to maintain that sense of self when you are enamored and focused on your partner, but it is vital to keep those parts of yourself that make you, YOU! Both women in each of the works we had to analyze lost that part of them self and it screams a tone of sadness in each work.

Emily Dickinson’s poem “The Wife” and Kate Chopin’s short story “Story of an Hour” have two main characters that feel very similar. Both of these texts are centered around women whose lives are defined by being married and neither one of them like it. The “Story of an Hour”‘s main character Mrs. Mallard’s husband just died, and she comes to the realization that while she might have felt sad at first, she was then overwhelmed with this feeling this she could finally be free. Be free to be her own person. She had been forced to sacrifice a good part of her life just to be her husband’s wife. She wasn’t allowed to be her own individual. This is very similar to the theme of “The Wife”. There the reverse is happening. A woman is being forced to set aside her own life, and her own identity for a man’s. Emily Dickinson writes, “It lay unmentioned, as the sea Develops pearl and weed” (Dickinson). Here, she is describing how the wife in the poem is going to have to lay aside all of her ambitions, her personal life, and her own interests now that she is married.

Just by reading the title of Emily Dickinson’s poem, The Wife, I predicted that it will be from the perspective of a woman telling her readers how life has changed on her behalf after marriage. Dickinson’s states, “She rose to his requirement, dropped the playthings of her life. To take the honorable work of woman and of wife.” Within the first paragraph, the writer makes it clear that she has changed her ways to live up to his standards. Further throughout the poem, she mentions that “It lay unmentioned, as the sea develops pearl and weed.” She would repress her emotions and freewill to be the wife she believes she is supposed to be. This theme connects to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour.” In the beginning of the story the news of her husband’s passing is broken to her. She is filled with grief, locking herself away in her room. Though as shes processing reality as a widow, she sees beyond that- a free and independent woman. She was accustomed to living for someone other than herself. It seems to have filled her with excitement.”There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature.” Shortly after, Mrs. Mallard passes away after the moment she evidently yearned for was taken from her when Mr. Mallard walked through the door.

In the story, “Of An Hour”, Mrs. Mallard is heartbroken when her sister breaks down at her the death of her husband. She feels her environment start to change negatively and that life was not the same for her anymore, she had lost a huge piece of herself. Her husband then comes and her mood is suddenly lifted. This shows her husband playing a huge part in her happiness in her life. This passage discusses how a character can feel a change coming into their environment. She repeated the word “Free” to persuade herself that things were going to be okay and that she needs to move and do more. The poem “Wife”, by Emily Dickinson, explains how she is willing to sacrifice her life before being married, and giving it up for her husband. She realized that she wanted to become to a standard for her husband, where she would have to do different things, and how her life was going to change and not be the same anymore. She did not want to miss any day with him to help him out. They both show how marriage plays a significant role in wives’ lives. It gives them control and wanting to be accepted and validated.

In the story, ” The Story of an Hour”, Mrs. Mallard, while grieving by the window in her bedroom, found that a thought beyond the grief was creeping into her mind and growing stronger than the sorrow she felt from the news of the death of her husband. She describes the resistance of the emotion by saying ” She was striving to beat it back with her will.” However, the smell of the rain and the clouds in the sky, gave her a sense of new beginning and her life being her’s again. While the sister, Josephine and the husbands friend believed she was mourning, It was  frowned upon for her to express the extreme happiness that came with the thought of her freedom. The poem ” The wife” by Emily Dickinson, speaks on the depth of a feeling only known by the person themselves, “but only to himself is known the fathoms they abide”, how far thoughts and reach that sit in our minds without being able to express them. ” If aught she missed in her new day, of amplitude or awe, or first perspective, or the gold in using wore away.”  expresses to me how the wife, in both the poem and the story, longs quietly, for who she was before she was married.

The theme of Emily Dickinson’s “The Wife” relates to the emotional state of  “The Story Of An Hour” because they both take place during a time period where women didn’t have the same rights as men and overall highlights the unhappiness that women during this period felt for example in “The Wife Emily Dickinson states She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife. While in The Story Of An Hour the women loses her husband  (falling into the sea) but after she is finished crying she comes to the realization that she’s free (“Develops pearl and weed”,) these stories overall highlight how women felt at the time when it came to being at the behest of their husbands and not having being happy about their life or freedom until their husband passes away then they will be able to be free.

In the reading Oedipus the king, Timeless human experience, or behaviors we can find is from oedipus the king he who is brave, We know this because he ruled and serve at Thebes until his last days, he showed bravery. In the article we can read it said, you that live in my ancestral Thebes, behold this, Oedipus, him who knew the famous riddle and was a man most masterful: 1725 not a citizen who did not look with envy on his lot- see him now and see the breakers misfortune swallow him! looked upon the last days always,  Count no mortal happy till he has passed the final limit of his life secure from pain. This is refer to him telling us he will ruled till his last days, as a brave ruler not scare of his last days. This is a timeless human behavior because everyone is brave many different ways but we are brave.

The theme of Emily Dickinson’s poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour?” because of the low mood and unhappiness. My assumption is that Mrs. Mallard emotions before she found out her husband passed away were described as the lines below from the poem: “If aught she missed in her new day Of amplitude, or awe, Or first prospective, or the gold In using wore away” In my opinion the lines above describe the nostalgia of spontaneous glee, wonder, and good thoughts that aren’t there anymore. In Mrs. Mallard’s words, being “free”. I’m pretty sure in the beginning of both marriages mentioned there were wonderful times, but somewhere they grew apart. This has caused the wives to be full of disappointment, grief, and not wanting to be with the person anymore. During these times society didn’t believe in divorce, so women really had to stick it out with their husbands. This made them miserable, however they continued their duties of being a good wife. Emotions were held inside, and it was all about the husbands. Mrs. Mallard’s joy to find out her husband passed away made it obvious to readers that she wasn’t happy. So unhappy to the point she drops dead when her husband walks through the door alive.

Oldipus: What can I see to love? 1525 what greeting can touch my ears with joy? take me away, and haste- to the place out of the way! take me away, my friends, the greatly miserable, the most accursed, whom god too hates above all men on earth! I think this passage meaning or it’s referring to of who or which men can he trust or feel love as a friend, if from all men they an betray you. From what you have or are many of them sometimes envy you for that and want what you have, so that’s what I think he is trying to say. He also say this because of the truth of what happen with the king on that age who slowly betray not just only any friend or men. Doing whatever for what a man what’s, he becomes the worst from everyone. This is what this passage is most saying, as he says, What can I see to love, If he you don’t know who can betray you. Take me away, my friends, the greatly miserable, the most accursed. whom god too hates above all men on earth. referring to, all those bad mean friends, who even god might hate betray you and even though they are your friends.

The theme of Emily Dickinson’s poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state because both women lack freedom to be themselves. Becoming a wife meant that their own aspirations and interests had to take a backseat to their husband’s and  now he has the autonomy to dictate their destiny. The way the society was set up  is that there were certain expectations that a woman and a good wife had to follow and there were no exceptions to those rules. “It lay unmentioned, as the sea develops pearl and weed, But only to himself is known, The fathoms they abide”. It went without saying that women would be forced to follow the same set of rules once they are married in order to be perceived as a “good woman and wife” and not bring a disgrace to their family. Mrs. Mallard couldn’t help but feel relieved at the thought that she now has the freedom to be herself:”There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature”.

In ”A good man is hard to find” I think it’s a story that inside is about the massacre of an entire family, father, mother, children and grandmother, by a convicted murderer and two of the accomplices. The family takes a road trip and dies on the way to their destination. However, the grandmother is a believing woman who, from my point of view, I see as hypocritical because whoever is religious cannot be speaking lies and/or have classism before others; deception is experienced with her because she appears to be another person even in a quite shameless way since even if she tries to disguise it, she is hypocritical and is the one who leads her family to obtain something tragic, that is why we should not deceive prejudices based on cataloging with where we judge people based on how they look without even knowing who they really are.

She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife. But she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. And she opened and spread her arms out to them in welcome. The Story of the Hour says how the wife (Mrs. Mallard) is finally free, how she saw the future would belong to her, and she is excited about it. It relates  to ” The wife” because the poem tells us how the wife gave up everything (2) and took the honor of being a housewife and “dropped The playthings of her life, To take the honor, Of woman and of wife.” In ” Story of the hour, Mrs. Mallard repeats, ” Free! Body and soul free! “, although she loves her husband, there are times when she doesn’t (13). “And yet she had loved him — sometimes.” The two stories’ theme connects because they are both wife who are lost and become a housewife. But then became free once their husband’s died

The theme of Emily Dickinson Poem”The Wife” related to Mrs. Mallards Emotional State in “The Story of an Hour” based on both is the time period, they both were based in a time when women had to depend on men. In “The Wife” the first stanza was “She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife.If aught she missed in her new day”.  I feel like what was said shares a similar meaning in “the story of the hour” when the wife said ”There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself.” they both realize being with a man you feel tied down and like your life isn’t your own anymore. The only difference is one just got married and the other thinks she just became a widow.

In the poem “The Wife” by Emily Dickinson the author talks about a woman getting married is like giving up a part of her and taking up new responsibilities. The marriage slowly washes away the woman’s youth and views of society. She also mentions how hard it is for a woman to escape this marriage. I connected with “The Story of an Hour?” because in the beginning when Mrs. Mallard learned that her husband had died she cried like how she saw other women do that is how far she has slinked into the sea as mentioned in the poem. But then she realized that she would be free and that she could finally claw out of this marriage which in the poem is symbolized by the sea and how deep a woman has sunken into the water is shown in the “The Story of an Hour?” by when Mrs. Mallard realized she should be happy that she is free even if it was a lie.

The Story takes place in the 19th Century where women didn’t have any rights, where women were oppressed. In “The Story of an Hour” By Kate Chopin, Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state starts off with sadness, grief, and exhaustion. Halfway into the story the illustrator describes Mrs. Mallard quoting, “She was young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression” which reminded me of this quote in the poem “The wife” by Emily Dickinson “it lay unmentioned, as the sea develops pearl and weed”. The connection I discovered was the repression that was unspoken of by Mrs. Mallard, but it was an obvious observation to know that she was suppressed emotionally and physically. Being a wife meant taking commands and rising to requirements as Emily Dickinson poetically describes a wife. Mrs. Mallard’s emotions became ecstatic when she realized she would be free from the chains of enslavement. In the poem “Dropped the playthings of her life to take the honorable work of woman and of wife”, shows the connection of self-neglect that Mrs. Mallard comes to realize she will no longer possess in conclusion of her husband’s death. All of the excitement and longing for her freedom comes to an end when Mrs. Mallard passes away from a joyful fantasy.

“The story of an hour” was about this married woman named Mrs. Mallard who had a heart condition. She got news that her husband passed away in a horrific train accident. Her sister Josephine told her about the news but Mrs. Mallard was rejoicing, well she was not happy in her marriage but all she can think about was her freedom from her marriage and that made her happy. She was depressed because she loved her husband sometimes, but with him gone all she can think about was being  “free”. Her sister was so concerned about her health because Mrs. Mallard was just in her room. She was surprised when she saw her husband was opening the door well she fell because she got a heart attack.

The reading “Oedipus the King” discusses some timeless human experiences and behavior. For example, in the play, the citizens constantly pray to god, begging for Thebes because they are experiencing a horrific plague, faithfully believing that the king can save them. Similarly, in contemporary society, we can see how religion is still dominant; countries such as Iran and Yemen have an example of theocratic governments. Religious beliefs have been passed from generation to generation. Another example is pride, a negative human trait that can affect your self-growth. The consequence of having a superior and antisocial personality can result in a tragedic outcome. In the play, the oracle reveals to king Oedipus his inevitable fate, and he immediately protects himself using excessive pride as a shield. Despite his internal and external fights, he fulfills the prophecy of killing his father and marrying his wife. Those two characteristics are general aspects of life.

In “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”, I believe the story in its interior is about deceit and ignorance can go hand in hand.  O’Connor uses the grandmother as a way to show how manipulation and deceit toward her own family, people who you’d never turn on, to see a plantation home. Devices such as irony, foreshadowing, and symbolism are all used to tell the story but do play a part in the interior of the story. We see that the grandmother is obsessed with her vanity and views the past, specifically ignorant, racist parts of the past, to paint a better image of herself for others. Manipulative people like to be seen in a more positive light and will do many things to seem better than others. With all of her lying and ignorant comments, the topic of trust was brought up numerous times almost making her family’s death bound to happen. Without the lying, they would’ve been safe. The Misfit was symbolism for the opposite of a “good man”. Even in the grandmother’s last efforts to save herself, she is manipulating the Misfit and is only stopped when being shot and killed. The Grandmother wasn’t as good of a woman as she thought she was. The interior of the story shows that people no matter how true they believe their words are, do not practice what they preach.

In “A good man is hard to find,” the grandmother’s actions and opinions are interpreted as prejudice. She is described as religious, talkative, and discriminatory, which is perceived every time she innocently refers to the people and her surrounding. The audience can sense the interior side of the story when the grandmother emphasizes the importance of judging somebody by their appearance, the way she idealizes the fugitive criminal- Misfit. First, she tries to point out some positive observations about his identity, and then she faithfully attempts to declare his innocence to convince somehow he is a good man. Still, the criminal has already accepted he is guilty, and a bad man so ends up killing the old lady. Even though The grandmother is represented as a “Lady” who is morally superior and caring, her actual character is that she is a hypocrite and dishonest which lead her family to a tragic ending. This is a clear message: You can judge a book by its cover.

A Good Man Is Hard to Find was full of suspense towards the end. In my opinion the interior of the story was based on deceit and punishment. The grandmother was very deceitful, conniving and misleading. I honestly feel if the grandmother didn’t say a word the whole trip they wouldn’t have wounded up in the predicament they were in. The grandmother pretty much lied multiple times for the family to do as she says. She went as far into making up a story to get them to a destination that was somewhere else. When the thought of her sending her family to the wrong location came about in her mind, she didn’t even have the compassion in her heart to let them know. This led her family to be killed, which I felt was punishment for her actions, because she was the last to die. She had to listen to the gunshots that killed her family, in which she still thought of herself and tried to convince the Misfit to allow her to keep her life. Her trickery didn’t work this instance and she came to the realization of how she should’ve been when it was too late.

A Good Man Is Hard to Find is a story about a family who decides to go on a road trip to Tennessee but are killed along the way. On the surface the story seems to be about a family whose road trip is ended short due to tragedy. However, the story is really centered on the grandmother, the protagonist, and how her hypocrisy and ethics led to the downfall of her family. First, her standards are extremely hypocritical. She cared about her appearance and how people saw her on the surface but around her family she didn’t mind lying to get what she wanted. Her blatant racism is also a stark contrast from her outwards appearance. Furthermore, it was her lying that led the family to their death. She lied about the fact that there was treasure in an old plantation to manipulate the children into convincing their father to driving there. Later, she realized that the plantation was actually in Tennessee and everything goes downhill from there. She is the reason that the her family was killed.

In “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, on the surface, O’Connor writes about a small family meeting a serial killer on the loose while on a trip to another state. The interior of this story is that the grandma is very racist and extremely narrow-minded, she thinks that she’s the main character of everyone’s life. She believes she is a good manipulator and even hid the cat her son doesn’t like in a suitcase. The grandma is very ignorant and selfish, and I would say she is the reason she and her family died to the killer. On her trip, she ironically finds herself with the killer and attempted to manipulate the killer into not killing her. She attempted to do the same thing she does with her family by trying to soft-talk the killer and feed him lies. She was saying how a good person he is and mocking him, saying he wouldn’t shoot a lady. All these arrogant acts led to a tragic ending for her and her family’s lives.

In “A Good Man Is Hard To Find”, the interior is about morality and hypocrisy. Focusing on the grandma, she claims she’s a good person and sympathizes with what goes on in the world but yet she doesn’t do anything good. She thinks her moral qualities are self-evident and doesn’t even ask herself if what she is doing is right or reckless. Not only rationalizing bad behavior, she has no moral integrity. When the criminal gets introduced, shows integrity even though he can’t remember his crime, actually admits to his moral standing and has honesty. Although he is a murderer which is immoral, he is honest which separates him with the grandmother. When the criminal meets the grandmother, she becomes affectionate and comforts him, something she wouldn’t do for her son. This brings out another side in grandma instead of being judgemental and manipulative to the family. Ultimately as grandma says, “it’s a fallen world” but she’s wrong thinking she’s not part of it. With the Misfit, at least he’s honest and knows he’s not a good person, it doesn’t erase the burden on him but it separates him and the grandma in honesty.

I enjoy this story the most compared to the other reads. I would say that the story’s “interior” is mostly a commentary on how some people practice virtue signaling directly or indirectly. The grandmother acts very sanctimonious throughout the text and believes that a person’s morality is solely determined by some superficial observation.  The irony is that the misfit is the most honest and believable character because he sees himself for who and what he really is. The line where he says “Nome, I ain’t a good man,” The Misfit said after a second as if he had considered her statement carefully, “but I ain’t the worst in the world neither”.  is very interesting because I understand it both literal and subliminal. I interpreted it as he was calling out the grandmother’s hypocrisy, piousness and naivete. Which also brings me to the understanding that perhaps maybe all of her observations could come from a place of guilt in her younger days. Maybe she wasn’t all that “good” herself and thus projects herself onto people. Perhaps she believes that by seeing people’s goodness regardless of who or what they are-then maybe people can see her for how she wants to be seen.  

I feel Like that the interior of “A good man is hard to find” is one that focuses on the true character of a person. The Grandmother who refers to herself constantly as a “lady” (she even dresses in a manner that in the event that there is an accident those who come upon her will know by her dress that she was a lady) is anything but, she’s shallow, and judgmental. She looks down on her family and others, seeing herself as better, she also prideful (even after realizing that she had the address wrong she allowed the family to continue (thus sealing their fate). The “Misfit” while appearing (by his way of speaking respectfully showing some sort of warmth towards the mother when asking if she’d like to join Bailey. and his embarrassment of being without a shirt in the presence of women) comes off as a southern gentleman is in reality a murderous monster who is unfeeling. 

I think, “A good man is hard to find” by Flannery O’Connor is about how there is both good and bad in everyone. The grandmother is someone who was described as caring about her appearance and wanted to look good on the outside but she was also racist because of her upbringing and she just didn’t realize it. Meanwhile the misfit is described by the grandmother as looking like he’s a good person but in reality he’s a murderer. Throughout the whole story the grandma was trying to find the good in the Misfit by saying things like maybe they locked up the wrong person and telling him that he looked like a good person. The grandma is someone who wants to see the good in people which is why she kept calling people good like when Red Sammy was telling her that he got ripped off of gas. 

On a surface level “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor is a story about how a family meets their untimely demise to a serial killer. However, I think the interior of the story is about how people may act like they know what their moral compass is like but most don’t. In the story the grandma thinks of herself very highly. She talks about how she once was sought after by a rich man who brought her watermelons every Saturday, and dresses nicely so that if she may die during the trip people will know that she was a lady. Throughout the story however, she shows that she is racist and manipulative and selfish. On the other hand we have the misfit who is a serial killer and facing death the grandma tries to plea to him to not kill her. She tries to show him that he is a good person because of how he looks and that he can still be saved. However, the misfit knows that he isn’t a good person and is evil. He knows exactly what he is and doesn’t try to pretend that he is someone that is good or neutral but just evil.

In “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” Flannery O’Connor explores the conflict between appearance and reality. The grandmother appears to be a lady-like Christian woman, yet her encounter with The Misfit reveals that she does not believe in the central tenet of Christianity that Christ can raise the dead. In the story, there are two kinds of people. Those who know they are bad people and those who are bad people yet persist in believing they are good. The story depicts the impact of Christ on the lives of two seemingly disparate characters. One is a grandmother joining her son’s family on a trip to Florida. The grandmother makes the mistake of thinking that her own moral qualities are self-evident. At the end of the story, it is the grandmother who is seen as attaining grace. She attains it at her moment of death. She reaches out and recognizes the Misfit as her child. It is noted that throughout the story, it is the grandmother who advocates for the Christian faith. Both the grandmother and the Misfit are portrayed as stereotypes throughout the story, but their final encounter changes them. The grandmother’s journey from spiritual blindness to the realization of her own sins allows her to affect hopeful change in even the most despicable, unrepentant character, the Misfit. The author of this short story purposefully uses the two character types represented by the grandmother and the Misfit to show that anyone can change, as both characters, to varying degrees, represent humanity in all of its sinfulness. Looking carefully at the final encounter in the story, grace, an incredibly important concept for Flannery O’Connor, is shown to operate in both of these characters, presenting them with the possibility of change. Change through the delivery of grace is possible in anyone, as […]

The story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” was such an interesting read. It had a twist. I found myself pretty much on the edge of my seat. I think this story’s interior is how someone is portraying someone they aren’t. They are deceiving others to get what they want. People can be selfish.  For example, the grandma didn’t want to travel to Florida but wanted to go to Tennessee. She took every opportunity to convince her son not to travel to Florida. She even mentioned that the Misfit escaped jail and wouldn’t risk her family with him being out there. Ironically, they bumped into him. She also bought her cat without mentioning it to her son. She lied about a secret panel and then realized that the house was in. The grandmother portrayed being a nice person. She said, “…oh look at the cute little Pickaninny!”. She had a double meaning by calling the child cute but used an offensive term in the same sentence. By deceiving her family to get what she wanted, tragically got them killed by the Misfit and he killed her at the end in the dress she wore in case she was found dead. It was very ironic story, but this is chef’s kiss.

“ A good man is hard to find” by Flannery O’Connor is a fascinating read and a very complex one. To start off as we get familiarized with the family it’s not very likable all around: the kids are spoiled and entitled, the dad seems aloof and burnt out, the mother is listless. When it comes to the grandmother she is the opposite of a caring, warm granny we subconsciously expecting to see. She is extremely self-centered, selfish and manipulative. Her goal was to change their trip destination to Tenesseee and she was trying to scare her son with the news about the murderer on the loose first. Since that didn’t prove to be effective she moved on to pretending like it would be good for the kids to see something new. The picture we had painted of the grandmother character was that of a superficial lady who cares to look her best even after she is dead.  But something happens to her right before she gets shot by the notorious murderer “misfit”, she has an epiphany. This tragedy that had happened to her and the whole family, revealed her true essence right before she dies. And I think it’s one of the connotations of this story. “it is the extreme situation that best reveals what we are essentially”  as the author says in the essay about her work.

In the story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by O’Connor the interior is about the personalities under the different characters personas what they show on the surface for instance how the grandmother potray that she’s a good person who cares about her children well being and is a good influence while under that she is a narrow minded manipulating racist. The interior also shows how the most evil character (the criminal) is the only one who’s most true to himself and doesn’t need to put on a persona to potray something he’s not.

When reading “A good Man Is Hard to Find” on a surface level it is a story about a family that faced a very unfortunate event. The exterior of this story is that the family is dysfunctional and they encounter an “unlucky” situation with a criminal, Misfit. At the root and internal point of this story is so much deeper and somewhat philosophical. The Grandmother has the upmost character and moral compass flaw that leads her character to be hypocritical, manipulative and egocentric. One could say she is stuck in her own arrogance, she believes she is a Christian like woman while her actions prove otherwise. With her character flaws contradicting with how she sees herself, I don’t know if she truly believed that she was a perfect person. The Grandmothers’ encounter with Red Sam made her feel understood and heard, that is something she did not feel very often. She disregarded how Red Sam acted toward his wife, but awarded him with such respect and gratitude that he were polite to two strangers that needed gas. I think that was something she needed to feel good about herself. When the Grandmother and The Misfit meet, The misfit explains how he views no one is truly good or that it is extremely rare to come across genuine people. The Grandmother pleads for her life, possibly not truly understanding what he is saying, she tried to lead him to god and even tried to console him. Even though he felt some emotion towards her words to him, he knew this was a manipulative tactic to get him to have mercy on her life and not out of genuine concern or sympathy for The Misfit.

In the story “A Good Man Is Hard To Find” by Flannery O’Connor, the interior is more about the Grandmothers characteristics, and how she plays an important role in the story. The story’s interior is more based on her traits and actions in the passage. I think that a story’s “interior” is what it is mostly more than what it seems. I would compare it to an iceberg as how we only see so little, but if we were to look at the bottom of the ocean we would see so much for what it is. The Grandmother has a lot of negative characteristics as she is very racist and disrespectful. She shows her family that she is good and that nothing will happen, but then they end up being murdered. This is not a coincidence, it is on purpose, as she wanted all of it to happen. She tricked the family and is very selfish.

I just want to say this is probably my favorite story. A southern gothic classic in my opinion I love it. It has been a while since I felt so passionate and mesmerized by a story.  “We know what the story is about on the surface. What do you feel the story is about in its “interior?” is a very ironic question since the story is about how appearances can be decieving. The grandma acts like she is a top class lady and thinks she is more superior than others by the way she is very racist and classist, calling the little black child who has done nothing but be a bystander living his own life a slur and showing her racist and very snobby side. She doesn’t even feel the need to learn her daughter in law’s name or get to her and just simply refers to her own daughter in law and mother of her grandchildren “The children’s mother” The family’s demise is all based on cause and effect of the grandmother manipulating the family to see a plantation that is not even in Georgia but in Tennessese. The Grandma thinks herself as so smart and cunning and can get her own way no matter what just like how racist and classist and every bit of a snob she is. The Grandma warning the family of the dangers of traveling is also a self fullfilling prophecy at the end since she is also the cause of getting her own family killed. The Grandma tries to see the good in the Misfit because of the way he is dressed and his demeanor which also plays into her being snobby and classist and only judges people based on their outer appearance and their outer appearance only which in the end […]

What timeless human experiences or behaviors do you find in your reading of Oedipus the King? The story “Oedipus the King”, is relevant to this world crisis and in the past time as its been happening through the centuries where the kings are getting executed by their own family members to get into power. Just like that what happens in this plot when he would murder his father and sleep with his mother. Oedipus is ignorant of the deep dishonor he has done. Had Oedipus taken a moment to consider that there was any possibility that the man he was arguing with was his father, maybe he wouldn’t have killed him. Immediately following the murder, Oedipus could have felt shame for killing someone, but he could not have felt shame for killing his own father,  however, was viewed as an act of significant dishonor and, therefore, if Oedipus had known immediately after the fact that he had killed Laius, he would have taken on the burden of shame. Speaking to the Chorus, Oedipus asserts, “I account myself a child of Fortune, beneficent Fortune, and I shall not be dishonored.” Oedipus, believing that he has gone his whole life thus far outsmarting the gods, regards himself as being a man of great fortune and honor. Because Oedipus thinks he has not dishonored his family by killing his father and wedding his mother.

“A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor is a story about a family that had unfortunate luck and got killed by a criminal on the surface. I think the story in its “interior” is about human behaviors and punishment. The grandmother is very arrogant and judgmental. She thinks of herself as a good person but in real life she is racist and superficial. It’s funny how all of her decisions, which her family followed by her manipulation, lead them to this terrible incident. She chose to take the cat and hide it which led them to the accident when the cat jumped on Bailey. The accident was on a road where there was almost no one to help them because she decided to take the dirt road to see the house she thought was in Georgia (she also lied saying there was a secret panel in this house to convince the kids to go there). And finally, she wanted to go to Tennessee instead of Florida trying to convince her son not to go there because a criminal that just escaped, the misfit. Ironically they ran into the misfit on this dirt road and they all got killed. The grandmother was also very selfish – when she realized the man is the misfit she called “You wouldn’t shoot a lady, would you?”. Looks like she didn’t care at all about her son, his wife, or her grandchildren, but herself. Right before the misfit shot her she told him he is one of her own children and reached out to him. She showed some emotion, but he shot her anyway. The misfit talks about punishment a few times, maybe because of the punishment he got (maybe for a reason or maybe not). Even the misfit noticed that she […]

I think the interior of this story, like many ancient Greek stories, has its core rooted in the idea of fate. The story, “A Good Man is Hard To Find” is about a family that ends up being murdered on their way to vacation in Florida. However, the grandmother of this family leads them down the path, quite literally, that leads them to their murder. She is obsessed with the idea of dying, especially since she is close to death. She tries to avoid it, as most of us would, but she takes it to a different level with how all-consuming it is for her. She plans what she is going to wear in case she is found dead in it. And she wants to take unnecessary extra precautions to try to push death away as much as possible. However, it is proven to be unavoidable. The route she takes her family downs leads to their death, and she is unable to talk the murderer out of it. No matter what she did she couldn’t avoid it. Much like Odysseus, she couldn’t fight her fate.

This week’s read “A Good Man is Hard to Find” could be seen on the exterior as a chilling story about the murders of a family who just wanted to go on vacation. When we dive deeper, think about the story and maybe even reread it, you may notice that the interior is all about the coincidental theme of the story. From all the characters and including the title. “A Good Man is Hard to Find” so a bad man- The Misfit must be easy to find. The grandmother thinks there is no good left in the world, what a coincidence she is stuck with a grumpy and disrespectful family. What a coincidence that the grandmother dressed nicely so that if there was an accident and her body was left in the road, people would know she was a lady. And what a coincidence that the dirt road she tells Bailey to turn down leads them to The Misfit. The grandmother really thought she would be able to reason with a stone cold killer, maybe find something in common with him to get some sympathy but in the end she just gets left in the dirt, dead in her nice clothing.

A Good Man Is Hard To Find by Flannery O’Connor has a lot going on emotionally from the start the grandmother comes off as super condescending and deceitful the rest of the characters come off as somewhat like able in their own way but the grandmother seems to drag everyone down with her negativity and manipulation. She also is super racist saying that a black child must have stolen the watermelons that Edgar Atkins left. I think the interior of the story is that everyone can have a human character that people may like but that doesn’t make them any less of a bad person as we see with the grandmother and her soul mate Red Sam and we see how those kinds of people can have an effect on children and potentially raise them to become bigoted and manipulative like they are. The grandmother also seems to know that she is a bad person to a certain extent as well as when she comes in contact with The Misfit she starts being nice and seeing the good In him while also talking about Jesus it seemed like she knew she was going to have some things to answer for if she was to be killed in that moment.

In “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” by Flannery O’Connor I believe the story’s interior is about the fact that no one is good in this story where everyone is supposed to be good. Which leads me to discuss information about the grandmother and the misfit. The fact that the grandmother is ignorant, hypocritical, selfish and, manipulative. She is the reason they ended up dead in the woods. The Grandmother refuses to enjoy the family trip she had to manipulate her son and grand children to go on the family trip to another state. She asked them to make a detour which led them right to the misfit. Now I’m not sure if they would have gotten help and gotten out safely if she would have kept quiet but because she thinks she can get herself  out of everything, she just kept going, and got everyone murdered because of her ignorance. Now for the misfit he is clearly stuck in his ways and is on a killing spree. He let the grandmother go on and on as if he really cared about what she had to say he knew before he got out of the car that he was going to kill the family. The interior is definitely about a woman who thinks she can manipulate people and she tried to manipulate a murderer ,and not understanding the misfit is to far gone and there’s no saving him.

The story “A Good Man Is Hard To Find” by Flannery O’ Connor rides on suspense heavily. Throughout the whole story we get very interesting and telling bits of characterization. None of these people are supposed to be likeable. Our tension and hate between these characters just builds and builds with every other paragraph. To me, the grandmother, right off the bat, comes off whiny and unapologetic. She’s stubborn, manipulative, and stuck in her old ways. We’re introduced to the rest of the family and it seems like the norm is to ignore the grandmother. I think this is their way of handling her stubborn antics. It’s definitely not the healthiest or most proactive way but it’s telling of the rest of the family. The grandmother warns them of some criminal gone rampant in Florida; the Misfit. Soon after, they are caught by the Misfit. Surprisingly, out of all the characters, the grandmother shows compassion towards the him and acknowledges him as a human being. He shares one last melancholic word with her that her ignorance and lack of self awareness is innate to her character — creating a hideously ironic ending.

It started off with the grandmother who was trying to persuade her family to visit Tennessee instead of Florida for their vacation because she had motives, she tried everything in changing his mind and said “the kids already been there” they suggest she stays home but  they knew that wouldn’t happened, the  grandmother hides the cat in a basket in the car. The grandmother was dressed in the finest clothes, while driving and they were seeing some beautiful scenery. The grandmother conversations with the misfits reveals a lot about the grandmother and her religious beliefs, the misfit on the other hand does not  believe the grandmother likes red Sammy because he agrees with her. The  grandmother is so manipulative she convince Bailey travel off course.

In “A good man is hard to find” by Flannery O’Connor takes us in a roller coaster of emotions where each character plays a role in Mediocrity. The grandmother comes off as stuck in her ways as a manipulative, prejudice, deceitful lady. In the story, it seems as if there’s a hunt for goodness in everyone that the grandmother engaged with or mentioned to base her believes that “good” people do exist. Every character had a basic human positive trait as well as a negative trait since no one is perfect. I perceived the story as everyone trying to prove themselves, especially the grandmother. She judged her grandchildren, but uplifted Red Sammy for doing a kind gesture to customers.  She uplifted The Misfits when she saw her and her family’s life in danger. I believe that by her portraying she saw good in others, possibly others would see good in her. Also, the grandmother bringing in the topic of Jesus to the Misfits showed me that she knew her time was coming to an end and she needed grace. The Misfits were the ones that had to convince the grandmother that good people are very hard to find. This story depicts that no one takes accountability for their behaviors and ways but The Misfits. Even if they were bad, they were the only ones to show self awareness.

When speaking about the interior of the story, I found it helpful to re-read and consider what was being displayed passed the dialogue.  Initially, I found the grandmother to be persuasive and charming and even harmless.  However, after reading the entire story, her so-called harmlessness is what lead to the demise of the entire family.  I went back to the beginning of the story, and realized her persuasive charm was more of manipulation all for self-serving purposes. For example, she insisted on visiting Tennessee over Florida and went as far as to try to scare her son using the escape of the Misfit from jail to instill fear in him. Also, using guilt by saying, “I wouldn’t take my children in any direction with a criminal like that aloose in it. I couldn’t answer to my conscience if I did.” Her willingness to exploit her sons fears to get him to adhere to her wants, displays extreme selfishness and lack of consideration for her impact on him. Again, her responses seemed harmless during my first read because it is common for people to make comments like that.  Towards the middle of the story, when the grandmother told of the old house on a plantation with hidden silver in the wall panels, the way the children began to impose their wants onto the father, was very similar to how his mother treated him, only with less grace. It showed how her overbearing treatment of him turned Bailey into a push over even by his own children. On the surface the children just seemed like regular kids who, ” say the darndest things.” a bit rude but it isn’t uncommon for kids to test their parents, especially in public. Again, after re-reading the story and seeing beyond the surface of my first […]

Oedipus the King is a play written over a thousand years ago. However, the characters’ experiences and behaviors are still relatable to people from all eras, including us living in the modern era. One of these things is how we tend to think about the worst case scenarios as Oedipus did when be believed that Creon was after his throne. In the play it states “I have come because I heard deadly words spread about me, that the king accuses me.” Oedipus is so paranoid of Creon taking the throne that even Creon knows about this rumor without Oedipus directly informing Creon. Another thing that humans have experienced for all eternity is pride. Oedipus the King is completely based on the hubris of Oedipus and how it was his downfall. We see this happen over and over throughout history. One example is Hitler, he thought his ideas were the truth and decided to subject them to most of Europe but failed as he was too prideful and never thought that he would lose the war.

“Oedipus the King” is interpreted by many people in different ways. My personal view on Oedipus is that his actions had consequences. I think poetry is a very philosophical art form. It’s created to tell stories but also creates thought-provoking life lessons. Life doesn’t just happen to you, though things can happen out of your control, overall, the actions you choose affect the trajectory of your life. Oedipus is shown to have immense pride described as hubris. His pride got in the way of his clarity even when it was laid out in front of him. The oracle told him his fate and even then he chose not to listen because he thought he was above that. He was ignorant of the fate shown to him to keep power over Thebes and keep a good image. Blindness and eyes are also used as symbolism for the ignorance shown by Oedipus in comparison to a character like Teiresias, physically blind but not ignorant. The psychological aspect of Oedipus is very interesting considering there are different psychoanalysis relating to “Oedipus the King”. The Oedipus complex, hubris, toxic pride, and psychological egoism are some of the few studied theories seen in literature and the real world. Whether people believe in them or not, it shows that it is timeless and can still be used to look at real-world problems.

I agree with Aristotle when he explains that “poetry is a higher form than history.” This is because in poetry so much is able to be explained with such little words. We are able to see how people were able to feel using the figurative languages. The audience is also able to understand different points of views. History is much more biased and may only focus on one side instead of all of them, just like today.   Oedipus, wants to find the truth so he sees anything in his power to do so. He is very curious and knows that he takes control and gets the best of him. I understand why he wants to find the truth out because when I look at it from his point of view I am able to see how important it is and why he is so determined to do so. Even thought he had many obstacles he still wanted to do whats best for him, because he did not want to keep it hidden from him.

In Oedipus the King, there are many timeless human experiences or behaviors. Aristotle also writes that poetry is a higher form than history, he uses poetry to show all of these timeless human experiences. One of them is death and, everyone knows what death is and that we cannot escape it when it is our time also almost everyone has heard on the news about a tragic murder. In the play, Oedipus had to go through the consequences when he found out that he had killed King Laius. Death has always affected humans, centuries ago and even in the play. Another timeless human experience or behavior is religion, most families have their own beliefs and gods they believe in. The play frequently brings up the “gods” or praying to Zeus to protect a king. They really believed in Zeus so much that the citizens would pray about anyone who wants to cause harm to “important” people, like kings, for example, should be harmed. This is an example of timeless human experiences because many people now still pray to their God, not exactly like in the play, but they pray for good things.

Oedipus the King is a story about a Greek king who ends up killing his father and marrying his mother, even though he does everything he can to avoid doing that very thing. Even though it is set in Ancient Greece, there are timeless human experiences that people from today still can relate to. For instance, Oedipus ignores everything that points him to the truth about his life. He is so blinded to it. People around him are telling him things he doesn’t want to hear, so he simply doesn’t listen and remains ignorant. This is something that people can relate to. People constantly try to deny things that might be true because accepting the truth is too hard for them. Another relatable moment in the play is the fear that the chorus experiences. They represent the average citizen who has to live in the city but doesn’t have any real control over what is going on. They can only watch and hear about what is happening. People, especially recently, can relate to this. With scary events going on around the world, and with politicians not seeming to do a lot to change it, I know that people feel like the only thing they can do is sit and watch.

One of the defining human conditions that is prevalent throughout the play is the attempt to escape one’s fate and the burden of truth. I understand that in his position the idea that he would murder his own father and to then sleep with his mother deeply disturbed him so much that he perhaps thought he could do something to escape that destiny by using his free will. However, not realizing that his actions end up fulfilling the very prophecy he’s terrified of. Along with the idea of escaping fate and free will, another theme I’ve picked up is sight and blindness. The contrast between a blind prophet who can “see” the world for what it really is and Oedipus who is able to see with his own eyes yet to chooses not to see things for what they are.  Sometimes we choose to see what we want to see because it’s easier to live in ignorance than to be burdened with the weight of the truth. 

“Oedipus the King” is considered timeless because it shows us a sense of control we feel we have of our lives but can cause us problems. In this story, Oedipus couldn’t escape his destiny even having the best intentions. Oedipus lesson can apply to us also with our curiosities, if we figure out the questions we have it doesn’t mean it can change our viewpoint. We can decide how to act and go on with the consequences. Oedipus seeks out knowledge finds the truth out and bears the consequences with dignity and personal responsibility. Oedipus suffers the consequences but it’s what comes with knowing ourselves. This story also tells us we can’t always control our destiny but we can steer it in the right path. We as humans are blind to the truth because we are afraid of facing and dealing with reality. Sometimes the truth can have a positive or negative impact on our lives.

Throughout history there are people out there who experience things only they will forever for the rest of time. While everyone else in history may experience things others will never they also experience things everyone will. In “Oedipus the King” one experience or behavior that everyone experiences is the will to keep a secret to your grave. The Herdsman knows the truth of Oedipus but he doesn’t want to tell the secret as it is terrible and he knows that Oedipus will not take it well. Another experience or behavior is when Oedipus learns the truth and he then gets stuck in grief and despair. He begins to hate himself and wishes that he had died instead of being saved. Both of these are something everyone no matter the time period experiences as we all have things we wish to keep to ourselves or hate ourselves for something we did intentionally or not.

This play of Oedipus the King was an interesting play to read. It showed the King’s character development in many ways. The King was soaring high. The timeless experience that stood out to me of how he was this loved King who had it all. The citizen’s admiration, a family. He found out that he killed his father and married to his mother. His whole behavior changed, and everything came crumbling down. Tragically, this ripple effect caused his mother to hang herself. It is tough when you’re in a situation like that and sometimes you feel like you’re not able to get yourself out of this hole you’ve dug yourself in.  The mother couldn’t face the fact that this has come to light, and she found this as her only way out. I think that it showed that no matter how high you are, there is no such thing as perfection.

There are many Timeless human experiences or behaviors you would find In the second half of Odepius The King Sophocles, one of those being facing the death of a loved one everyone have experienced this for centuries and is bound to at some point in their lives and will react differently to it depending on the person. Oedipus reaction was strucking his eyes when he saw his wife/mother after she committed suicide by hanging herself after that he then wanted to isolate himself in the mountains until he dies. Another Timeless human experience is parents mistakes befalling onto their children like how oedipus killed both of his parents and now his children have to live with being inbred and the children of a murderer “1685 your father killed his father and sowed the seed where he had sprung himself and begot you out of the womb that held him these insults you will hear. Then who will marry you? No one, my children; clearly you are doomed 1690 to waste away in barrenness unmarried.” 

What timeless human experiences or behaviors do you find in your reading of Oedipus the King? We all agree that Oedipus’ most admirable traits are his determination, commitment to truth and justice, and his desire to be a good king to Thebes’ people. When he hears that the devastating plague Thebes is a result of Laius’ murder being unpunished, Oedipus stops at nothing to discover the truth about Laius’ murder.  He seeks to enforce justice for the murder of Laius. Despite being warned by the blind prophet Tiresias that Oedipus will be upset by the true identity of Laius’ murderer, Oedipus still stays committed to his search for the truth. We can definitely say that  Oedipus’ determined search for the truth on behalf of his people ultimately leads to his downfall and tragic end.  Even when Oedipus discovers the horrifying truth that he is, in fact, the perpetrator of the crime, he does not deny it or attempt to hide the truth. Instead, he acts as a great and loyal king to the people of Thebes because he sacrifices himself for the higher cause of his people’s wellbeing. he is strong and determined in his search for the truth at any cost, he bravely faces and accepts his guilt.

While reading Oedipus the King there are mentions of timeless human experiences and behaviors. One of those would be the societal fear of killing their father and marrying their mom. Most people in society would think that it would be one of their greatest fears for that to happen. In all cultures, there’s an incest taboo that this story would relate to in the real world. Another behavior that is mentioned in the passage is that we would not have control of our own lives rather a more significant and greater force is making these things happen. The fear that we do not control our own lives is something that most people would be afraid of. I myself think that if I didn’t have control over my own life what’s the point in doing anything if it’s all predetermined and you wouldn’t be able to choose for yourself. There are other behaviors that are exhibited in the passage but these are the ones that I have seen.

While reading about Oedipus Rex whose importance is capital for Western civilization. In addition to being a masterpiece from the theatrical point of view, I understood that Jocasta also influences as a protagonist of this reading since she is his mother. His experience or his timeless human behavior gave me a lot of intrigue as I read because he talks about where we come from and that makes me think of a family tree; although his wife asked him not to continue with the same investigation. Reading about the couple that the mother commits suicide when the marriage comes to light and suicide is generally associated with an individual act, with a very clear purpose despite the fact that there are ways to prevent it, it is usually difficult because perhaps not everyone has support powerful enough to prevent it. Oedipus orders an investigation and urges the people to hand over the culprit.

In the play Oedipus showed many emotions but the one that stood out to me was his curiosity and strong will to find out the truth about his birth even if he knew it might end up badly. In the play his wife Jocasta tries to stop him from going any further to seek the truth after he learns that he was adopted by Polybus. She says things like, “O be persuaded by me, I entreat you; do not do this” at this point she probably already knew the truth and didn’t want Oedipus to find out since it was such a bad thing. Oedipus however was too curious and fixated on the truth of the matter that he disregarded Jocasta’s care and in the end she was resigned to telling him that he was, “…unhappy Oedipus…”. He wasn’t satisfied with what he already had/knew and ended up destroying his family for it.

When the play opens, Oedipus and the Priest are speaking about the sickness that is plaguing the city “The town is heavy with a mingled burden of sounds and smells, of groans and hymns and incense…” (Lines 3,4 spoken by Oedipus), a Blight is on the fruitful plants of the earth, a blight is on the cattle in the fields, a blight is on our women that no children are born to them; a God that carries fire, a deadly pestilence, is on our town (lines 26-30 spoken by the priest). Sickness is a timeless human experience to varying degrees from individual influenza to the l typhoid fever outbreak of NYC in 1906 lest we forget our own recent pandemic outbreak of 2020 from the year of 541 to present day humans have always experienced some sort of plague/epidemic or mass sickness. Another experience is death and murder. Murder is the oldest crime in history, and we’ve all been exposed to it either via firsthand experience or secondary through media such as news. Death takes many forms including suicide (which has a yearly average of 800,000 deaths documented globally). Death is the only constant in life. In the play Oedipus Rex kills King Laius, Oedipus’s Wife/Mother dies by her own hand after she learns of the incestuous relationship she had with her son.  

After reading the rest of the story I got a better insight and understanding of the king’s personality. He as an individual was just a human being made out of flesh and mortal and with many flaws of his own. While he might not be the wisest king, but one of his biggest flaws is that he was so conceited. His arrogance was ironically blinding for him and I think it’s one of the timeless problems for the humanity. Both his and queen’s reactions that followed after they learned the truth illustrated how emotionally undeveloped they are. Additionally their decisions also highlight a universal issue of being selfish, because no matter of how hard the situation or the circumstances sometimes might be, one should be capable of caring of how their actions going to affect others. Jocasta takes her own life without giving a thought about her children and not taking the responsibility to stay and help them cope with the aftermath of their mistakes.

Oedipus the king has many emotions and behaviors, one that stood out to me was when Creon was worried that the King accused him of a serious scandal that tarnished his character. He goes on to say that he can’t live with the burden which sounds like a guilty conscience in the moment. Creon goes on demanding evidence for what he is being accused of.  The reaction by Creon made me feel connected to the drama that unfolded. It is normal human behavior to feel offended and request for evidence for such serious claims. I admired that there was so much wisdom and emotional intelligence when Creon asked the King to Reflect on the situation. Creon’s character radiates strength which I admire a lot. The self-awareness that he acquires within shows his maturity and discipline as a person with great integrity.

Greek tragedies were plays that had themes around human nature as a way to make the audience feel connected and involved in the performances. While there are many examples of timeless human experiences in Oedipus the King by Sophocles, the experience I choose to speak on is curiosity. Even more specifically curiosity about finding out who your biological parents are. Adoption is very common in todays world but I’m sure was not common and probably even frowned upon in 429 BC. Since adoption is so common today, a lot of children are left wondering who their blood parents could be. Sometimes biological parents might not want to be found, but the child could be dying to know so they could get their closure about the situation. In todays world it’s become easier to find people with technology and social media, Oedipus would have probably had a much easier time finding out the truth in 2022. Curiosity is what makes us human and keeps us evolving, you never know until you try or find out!

In the second half of Odepius The King Sophocles there are many timeless human experiences and behaviors. a couple that stood out to me was when the mother hung herself when the marriage came to light. Suicide is sometimes a human behavior when someone becomes severely depressed due to pressure from society, a lot of people tend to think about suicide. a great deal don’t attempt and try to find a way to figure out their problems but sadly for her she successfully committed suicide. The kids felt like a disgrace and felt like no one would want to marry them being as they are Odepius kids, and everyone viewed him as a monster. I understand why they would feel that way. Anyone that would want to marry them may be treated badly due to Odepius incestuous history with his mother and no one wants to be judged which is definitely a timeless human experience.

Oedipus the king has a wide range of emotions and human experiences and behaviors one that stood out to me was the citizens praying to Zeus to protect their king and to make anyone that would bring harm to him to be struck down. This is still somewhat common in terms of people believing and religion and praying to help a family member or someone they know to be protected during surgery or for them to be healthy religion and a higher power has been a thing for thousands of years in human history and will continue to be so. Another experience that I noticed is Oediupus’s curiosity and wanting to find the truth on who killed Jocasta only to find out that Jocasta hung herself after finding this out Oedipus becomes quite emotional and ends up doing what happens in the rest of the story this is also a timeless human experience because he acted out of emotion after losing someone they cared about which still happens today because humans are emotional and care about the ones they love deeply so when something happens especially the loss of someone humans do crazy things out of emotion and from the pain of the loss.

Literature is the story of what is universal in the human experience. Reading Oedipus the King I could identify several timeless human behaviors. Human beings are emotional creators; it is clear to see that in this story since it is very dramatic. The characters in this story are very impulsive, and moved by passion. The most outstanding behaviors are Oedipus’s and Jocasta’s when the truth comes to light. Jocasta hanged herself and put an end to her life while Oedipus blinded himself claiming that there is nothing for him to see. They both were frightened by the terrible discovery and that lead them to their deeds. I find these behaviors as timeless human behaviors because at the end of the day they are both human beings who reacted by their emotions. I feel like this type of story comes as a mirror for human behavior in an exaggerated way in order to make us wonder about how our mind works. How will people act when they’re suffering, where is the limit?

Alex Barrios  Professor Conway  ENG 201 Sec. 0517  October 3, 2022    “I say with those you love best you live in foulest shame unconsciously and do not see where you are n calamity.” – Line 416 TEIRESIAS conversing with OEDIPUS.    This line catches my attention the most because for Teiresias she warned Oedipus that the knowledge she had on her king about what he had done would stir his anger to which she confirmed. The line flows very beautifully and there’s a particular contrast between love and shame along with a bit of irony as she mentions that he “does not see where he is the calamity.” while she herself is blind because she has no eyes. It’s a good example of people who ask for truth often aren’t really prepared to accept it-let alone hear it. So, Oedipus responds by almost in a threatening tone in Line 426, “Do you imagine you can always talk like this and live to laugh at it hereafter”. The two lines for encapsulates the idea that a man can ask and seek guidance and yet choose to remain closed-minded.       

While reading the second half of the assignment, my view of Oedipus shifted. The timeless human behavior/experience that stood out for me was his curiosity in seeking the truth.. Especially the truth that tells where we comes from, our lineage, our family history.  His wife had begged him multiple times not to follow through in his search.  Ignorance is bliss but, it seemed that as a king, he needed to know the truth not only for himself but to be worthy of his position and the admiration and love of his people.  I gathered that point of view towards the end of the play based off his extreme expression of disappointment and the actions he took out of the shame he felt.  Knowing the truth  creates an irresistible urge to do so no matter the costs. Scientists trying to make new discoveries, detectives solving a murder, etc.  In Oedipus’ case, he knew the possibility of the rumors being true would lead to his possible downfall, yet he could not stop until he knew for sure.  He left his home out of fear that the prophecy would come to pass, he took actions to avoid what he feared the most.  He could have easily stopped the search and continued to rule Thebes. However knowing the truth was stronger than his desire to keep his title.

Jocasta is a very important character because she is Oedipus mother and wife. Jocasta didn’t believe in the prophecy that was told by the Oracle she said 815 “do not concern yourself about this matter listen to me and learn that human beings have no part in the craft of prophecy”. when the messenger came by to bring to Oedipus that his father Polybus was dead he was relief because the prophecy didn’t come through, Polybus was his father after all and him dyeing of old age was a good thing. Oedipus fear mislead him Why should man fear since chance is all in all  for him, and he can clearly foreknow nothing?1101 Best to live lightly, as one can, unthinkingly. As to your mother’s marriage bed, —don’t fear it.  Before this, in dreams too, as well as oracles,  many a man has lain with his own mother. But he to whom such things are nothing bears his life most easily.1105

“Who is the man proclaimed by Delphi’s prophetic rock as the bloody handed murderer,545 the doer of deeds that none dare name? Now is the time for him to run with a stronger foot than Pegasus, for the child of Zeus leaps in arms upon him 550 with fire and the lightning bolt, and terribly close on his heels are the Fates that never miss. “    To me this passage poses the question as to who the murderer is. Also, it warns that they should leave the kingdom as quickly as possible to avoid the inevitable outcome of them being brought to justice for their crime, “Now is the time to run with stronger foot than Pegasus” In Greek mythology the “Pegasus” was a winged horse capable of swift and speedy travel via flight. “For the child of Zeus leaps in arms upon him with fire and the Lightning bolt” Zeus was depicted as the King of the Greek Gods Upon the death of Laius his essence returned to the God he worshiped “Zeus” and because of his servitude the “Lightning Bolt” or Justice of the Gods will be done because the Fates(fate) deems it so and the Fates are never wrong, “Fates that never miss.” 

“…a war God ringed with the cries of men, savage God who burns us; grant that he turn in racing course backwards out of our country’s bounds to the great palace of Amphitrite or where the waves of the Thracian Sea 215 deny the stranger safe anchorage. Whatsoever escapes the night at last the light of day revisits; so smite the War God, Father Zeus, beneath you are thunderbolt, 220 for you are the Lord of the lightning, the lightning that carries fire.” This is after oedipus talks about the king he had killed and said he would not have the same fate. But you can’t escape Gods plan for you or want different. “Oedipus the king” is a Greek mythology. It’s about how Oedipus unknowingly killed his father and married his mother. The king of Thebes was warned by oracle about how his son was going to kill him. When Jocasta birth her son he was taken away, but the shepherd felt bad and gave him away to be adopted by King Polybus. When Oedipus entered adulthood, he visited Delphi and learned his faith to kill his father and marry his mother. He chooses to leave his home, Corinth, and never return. When he was traveling towards Thebes, he ran into Laius and killed him. He was rewarded in becoming king of Thebes and married Jocasta and birthed his kids. He couldn’t get away from his faith.

OEDIPUS: For what you ask me—if you hear my words and welcome them and fight the plague, you will find strength and lightening your load. Hark to me; what I say to you, I say 235 as a stranger to the story as a stranger to the deed, for I would not be far upon the track if I alone were tracing it without a clue. But now, since after all was finished, I became 240 a citizen among you, citizens— now I proclaim to all the men of Thebes: who so among you knows the murderer by whose hand Laius, son of Labdacus, died—I command him to tell everything 245 to me,– yes. However, he fears himself taking the blame. (4) This passage talks about how the King of Thebes tries to get rid of the evil of Thebes. “I Proclaim to all the men of Thebes who so among you knows the murderer by whose hand Laius, son of Labdacus, died” I believe in this passage, he is informing this person, Fighting with Oedipus will bring you great powers of strength and things will be easier to handle    

“I am stretched on the rack of doubt, and terror and trembling hold my heart, O Delian Healer, and I worship full of fears for what doom you will bring to pass, new or renewed in the revolving years. Speak to me, immortal voice, child of golden Hope” (Grene, 3 182-188). This is passage is from the very beginning of the play. The chorus represents the citizens, the average onlookers, who aren’t playing a major role, just only able to watch. So right now, they are very anxious, stressed, and filled with overwhelming fear because their home is in ruins and there is nothing they can do about it but watch. In this passage, they show their fear through their creative language. The chorus describes how their fear “holds my heart”. This language allows the listener to see how these feelings are taking over their whole being. How they are all consumed in their fear. The chorus is also showing their faith in this verse. Even though they are scared, they still are praying. They refer to Apollo, by calling him the “Delian Healer” and the “child of Golden Hope”. Showing how he is their savior, their end to this suffering, much like the raising sun is to the night.

Section 4. Lines 963-967:   “Pride breeds the tyrant violent pride, gorging, crammed to bursting with all that is overripe and rich with ruin—clawing up to the heights, headlong pride crashes down the abyss—sheer doom!”   This conversation on the outcomes of pleasure happens when Oedipus is rapidly discovering extra small print about his two-edged curse and does no longer quit making an attempt to locate the truth, notwithstanding pleas from Jocasta. The sentiment of delight being Oedipus’s downfall is one that is repeated at some point in the play, with Tiresias being the first to point out it. Oedipus is a proud man, he is praised as the King of Thebes and the defeater of the Sphinx, however, it is his pride, his very own trust that he is a proper man who is liked by the gods, that leads him to unravel this very belief. In his strive to discover the historic proof to show he liked the gods, he solely proves to himself and those around him that he suffers from a merciless fate.   Section 5. Lines 1188-1190:   “I count myself the son of Chance, the great goddess, giver of all good things—I’ll never see myself disgraced”   These lines are spoken using Oedipus earlier than he is conscious that the prophecy he tried to keep away from has come true. However, this quote is simply as authentic as the end of the play, the place Oedipus is aware of and accepts his horrible fate. In Greek mythology, Fortune is the goddess of destiny and she is depicted as veiled, as to be impartial to those to whom she was once distributing suitable or terrible luck. In the state of affairs in which he says this line, Oedipus is dealing with the newfound truth that […]

Oedipus  the king is quite the interesting read with a lot of double meanings and nuances the part of the passage I picked is What is the sweet spoken word of God from the shrine of Pytho rich in gold War God ringed with the cries of men, a savage God who burns us; grant that he turn in racing course backwards out of our country’s bounds to the great palace of Amphitrite19 or where the waves of the Thracian sea 215 deny the stranger safe anchorage. Whatsoever escapes the night at last the light of day revisits; so smite the War God, Father Zeus, beneath your thunderbolt, 220 for you are the Lord of the lightning, the lightning that carries fire. This is said shortly after Oedipus talks about the previous king that was murdered and promises that he would not have the same fate as for the chorus I believe they’re trying to be optimistic somewhat and have a good outlook by saying that anyone that is trying to turn the country backwards or is trying to set it back will be taken care of by their god (Zeus) by first denying the stranger any safe anchorage to make it harder for them to get in. They even go onto to say that whatever ends up getting through at night time will pop up when the day comes and that Zeus will take care of the war god by striking them. I think that the stranger they are talking about is a metaphor for war and anyone that is trying to hurt their new king and trying to turn their country into a less stable more chaotic place and that they have full faith in Zeus to take care of it which is why I believe it has […]

545 the doer of deeds that none dare name? Now is the time for him to run with a stronger foot than Pegasus for the child of Zeus leaps in arms upon him 550 with fire and the lightning bolt, and terribly close on his heels are the Fates that never miss. This passage in “Oedipus the King” happens right after the citizens hear Teiresias talk about how he has knowledge on who killed the previous king and Oedipus tells him to share the knowledge. Teiresias refuses to tell Oedipus what he knows despite the fact that Teiresias was called here by Oedipus and they start arguing until Teiresias leaves. Since the citizens hear about it but do not know who it is they start talking about whoever it is and how they should run away instantly. They say that the killer needs to have,” a stronger foot than Pegasus.” and yet they also say that,” the Fates that never miss.” which could indicate how the citizens think that even if the killer is faster than a mythical creature it would not matter, as in the end they will get what they deserve as indicated by what the three fate sisters see.

580 but amongst men there is no distinct judgment, between the prophetand me—which of us is right. One man may pass another in wisdom but I would never agree 585 with those that find fault with the king till I should see the word proved right beyond doubt. For once in visible form the Sphinx came on him and all of us 590 saw his wisdom and in that test he saved the city. So he will not be condemned by my mind. I chose this passage because it shows how they praised the king and I feel like they see him as this great man. You can see that also in the beginning the priest along with the children came to beg him for help. They are suffering and say he is their savior as he saved the city once. The old men said that “One man may pass another in wisdom”, but they will never defy and doubt the king. They need to actually see evidence of the faults in the king before condemning him. It is like Innocent until proven guilty. They are united and will stand by the king. I think we can see the old men are very loyal to the king Oedipus. It shows that they are tight knit, and they are supportive of the King Oeidupus. I think that is what is needed to have someone that has your back.

“it is not right to think good men, without reason, bad or bad men good.” (Line 609) “time alone can make it clear a man is just while you can know a traitor in a day.” (Line 613) In “Oedipus the King,” I chose the scene which describes my feelings of unfairness for me.  I have selected the scene where Oedipus accuses Creon of conspiracy because he betrayed him. In the scene, Creon asks the elders what was said about him, for he is concerned about the rumours that have started spreading. He claims that he has never caused any harm to Oedipus that he knows of, and asks why this accusation was directed at him. As Oedipus enters, he asks Creon how he could come there and accuses him of trying to steal the crown and of murdering Laios. Furthermore, he questions why Tiresias didn’t come forward at the time of the murder and says that he refuses to be convicted of murder. Oedipus is free to judge him, Creon says, but not without some proof, as it is “not right to think good men, without reason, bad or bad men good.” Creon believes it takes time to judge for: “time alone can make it clear a man is just while you can know a traitor in a day.” Creon, her brother, swears on his death that he has done nothing of what Oedipus has charged him of. At the same time, the elders agree, asking Oedipus to calm down and believe Creon, for they do not believe he is a fool.  We can say that Creon simply defends himself against Oedipus’s accusation by saying that Oedipus is not wise by being stubborn and forgetting common sense.

“25 out of the depths, out of the bloody surf. A blight is on the fruitful plants of the earth. A blight is on the cattle in the fields, a blight is on our women that no children are born to them; a God that carries fire, ” This whole passage speaks of death and the toll that the city’s citizens are facing. They had come to Oedipus hoping for help. The belief in their gods that they would be saved was something that they had sincerely believed in because everyone loved Oedipue so much that they had no doubts about him and they saw him as a great leader. A focal point in the play is finding out who killed the king before Oedipus his late father. When he comes and finds out that he was the one that had killed his own father and married his mother he is appalled. As the plague that is affecting his entire kingdom is caused by himself. I chose this passage because it exemplifies exactly what he is causing to his own people. Blight is a rapid spread of disease. That word alone tells me that the people of Oedipus is suffering and they are looking for his help, showing their undying loyalty to him.

those children that are born lie dead on the naked earth unpitied, spreading contagion of death; and gray-haired mothers and wives everywhere stand at the altar’s edge, suppliant, moaning; the hymn to the healing God15 rings out but with it the wailing voices are blended. From these our sufferings grant us, O golden Daughter of Zeus,16 210 glad-faced deliverance. In the play, it speaks of a disaster that they face with many babies dying and everything is just kind of dead, “spreading contagion of death…” everyone is just kind of sick and they are praying and giving offerings to the gods to help them through this time. I chose this quote because it shows what the people are going through and it paints a picture of how bad it was that they were turning towards the gods for help. It shows that through the suffering they all gathered at the altar to ask for blessings from Athena, “golden daughter of Zeus” to help stop the god of war, Ares as they think it is him that “…burns us” They attributed their suffering to Ares and want the other gods such as Zeus and Athena to help them. 

Oedipus cared about power and dominance, not the people or Thebes. To kill the previous king for his own benefit of becoming king is one thing, but to then scout for the kings killer whilst knowing it is him who had done it is treacherous. The chorus was blinded by Oedipus’s hero image, that he conquered the Sphinx’s riddle. When Oedipus seeks for the priests and prophet’s help, he is boastful, but still seeking for an answer he already knows. He speaks of his own power he has gained, but praising the knowledge and profession the priest and prophet has. The prophet, Teiresias, and Oedipus had an intense conversation. Teiresias tried his best to keep quiet and not speak of what Oedipus already knows, but Oedipus started to put the blame on Teiresias and belittling his profession. That made Teiresias speak his truth, more than he had to, revealing that he knows Oedipus killed the previous king, Laius, and that his marriage to Jocasta is of sin. Oedipus and Creon are now rivals, Oedipus thinks Creon spoke ill of him to the Teiresias to make him say the things he said. He wants Creon dead and out of sight. He doesn’t want Creon to have an ounce of power or leadership in Thebes. Oedipus is focused on ruling that he would lose the friendship of the man that handed over his wife, he is willing to belittle and gaslight the higher entities that he asks for help, just so he can cover his tracks.  

“195 Our sorrows defy number; all the ship’s timbers are rotten; taking of thought is no spear for the driving away of the plague. There are no growing children in this famous land; there are no women bearing the pangs of childbirth. 200 You may see them one with another, like birds swift on the wing, quicker than fire unmastered, speeding away to the coast of the Western God.” In this passage the chorus is crying for help and expressing the devastating condition the city is in. They are saying: “all the ship’s timbers are rotten, taking of thought is no spear for the driving away of the plague.” This is a very powerful visualization where we can imagine how things are deteriorating while no actions are being taking to get the justice the citizens are seeking. The mood is very dark and hopeless, there is no new life and aspiration. The chorus is comparing the women of the land to birds who are swift on the wing: ”speeding away to the coast of the Western God.” They are not bearing children and are being taken by the god of death.

I felt that this play was very interesting because of the Monarchy and how the citizens loved Oedipus. This is because, from my past reading and history in general, people have always wanted to overthrow the King, and they did everything in their power to do so. Oedipus was a king that was loved by the people in Thebes. They wanted him to find the Laisos’ murderer. It seemed that the people trusted him dearly with huge actions and they believed in what he said. He was very defensive and stood his ground with Teiresias. He was being taunted and started to get angry. I feel that he was worried about how he looked during this encounter. I wonder if there is a real reason behind Creon using Oedipus’ weakness against that. I found that very disrespectful and today I feel that people use a person’s weakness and insecurity to power over them. I think that he was jealous and envious of what he had. I felt that Oedipus was kind and always willing to help the people in the city but I felt that he looked into Social Validation too much and he had a very boosted ego. In Lines 255-264, he takes initiative in what he thinks will help the people in the city.

In Oedipus the King, the Chorus functions as the collective voice of the citizens of Thebes. The chorus’s role is also to reflect the feelings of the audience and the citizens of Thebes and to interpret what is happening on the stage. In this week’s reading part, we see that the chorus is also serves as the king’s adviser when they suggest he call Teiresias. Oedipus is trying to find out who murdered the last king, Laius, and the chorus tells him that Teiresias sees things similar to the way Lord Apollo used to see and that he could help him find who killed the king; “I know that what the Lord Teiresias sees, is most often what Lord Apollo sees. If you should inquire of this from him you might find out most clearly” (Line 305). We can also see how the chorus is loyal to their king and won’t say anything bad about him, after he saved them. “Truly Zeus and Apollo are wise and in human things all knowing; but amongst men there is no distinct judgment, between the prophetand me—which of us is right. One man may pass another in wisdom but I would never agree with those that find fault with the king till I should see the word proved right beyond doubt. For once in visible form the Sphinx came on him and all of us saw his wisdom and in that test he saved the city. So he will not be condemned by my mind” (Line 578). Teiresias blames Oedipus for killing king Laius, and although the chorus said before that he sees things clearly, in other words – that they trust his prophecies, they stand by Oedipus, their current king, until a clear proof would say else.

“580 Amongst men there is no distinct judgement, between the prophetand me—which of us is right. One man may pass another in wisdom but I would never agree 585 with those that find fault with the king till I should see the word proved right beyond doubt.” I choose this passage because it really demonstrates the chorus loyalty to the king even though they realize teiresias has more wisdom than him. It also exhibits how their rationality far exceeds their loyalty which is impressive because you would expect more bias towards a king, however at the same time that strong loyalty for the king makes them slightly indecisive not because he’s simply the king but owing to the fact that they experienced first hand how the king wisdom has saved the city in the past as shown in line 588-590 “For once in visible form the Sphinx came on him and all of us 590 saw his wisdom and in that test he saved the city. So he will not be condemned by my mind”.  

In Oedipus the King, the Chorus sang an ode between 181-230. The ode was about seeking help from other gods. They were seeking help because the God of War Ares had a plague against them, that the plague was spreading contagion death to their city. Children were born dead and laid naked on the earth. Having their people suffer just because a savage god wanting to burn them. The only one to blame was the God of War Ares. They were asking the gods Zeus, Apollo, Athena, and Artemis to go against any god that wants to burn them which would be Ares. They were asking to dishonor the god of war due to his actions against the city. The reason for asking these specific gods for help because as the chorus said in lines 193 and 194 that the gods once drove the flames of destruction away from their land.  

“560 He is sad and lonely, his feet that carry him far from the navel of earth;39 but its prophecies, ever living, flutter around his head. Strophe The augur40 has spread confusion, 565 terrible confusion; I do not approve what was said nor can I deny it. I do not know what to say; I am in a flutter of foreboding; 570 I never heard in the present nor past of a quarrel between the sons of Labdacus and Polybus, that I might bring as proof in attacking the popular fame 575 of Oedipus, seeking to take vengeance for undiscovered death in the line of Labdacus.”   I selected this passage from Odeipus the King because you truly feel the Chorus’ shock to the situation. The elders are confused and perplexed by the information Teiresias delivers. They don’t know what to believe. “The augur40 has spread confusion, 565 terrible confusion; I do not approve what was said nor can I deny it.” The Chorus want to remain loyal to their King but they are able to remain logical because they want to see the proof if it’s actually true. They handle the situation in such a logical way. They want vengeance to whoever is responsible for the killing of Laius. Oedpius is just as angry and confused about the information. In the passages just before this Odepius is getting angry with Teiresias but the prophet is just there to deliver the news, he means no harm but only wants for Odepius to see the irony of how he is blind to his actions. And although the prophet is blind he can see the truth. I was just as perplexed while reading the beginning of Odepius the King and can appreciate the art of Greek tragedies.

LINES 813-836 JOCASTA: Do not concern yourself about this matter; listen to me and learn that human beings 815 have no part in the craft of prophecy. Of that I’ll show you a short proof. There was an oracle once that came to Laius, — I will not say that it was Phoebus’ own, but it was from his servants— and it told him 820 that it was fate that he should die a victim at the hands of his own son, a son to be born of Laius and me. But, see now, he, the king, was killed by foreign highway robbers at a place where three roads meet—so goes the story; 825 and for the son—before three days were out after his birth King Laius pierced his ankles and by the hands of others cast him forth upon a pathless hillside. So Apollo failed to fulfill his oracle to the son, 830 that he should kill his father, and to Laius also proved false in that the thing he feared, death at his son’s hands, never came to pass. So clear in this case were the oracles, so clear and false. Give them no heed, I say; 835 what God discovers need of, easily he shows to us himself. In this passage, Jocasta informs the new king, Oedipus, about an oracle who told the old king Laius that it was “Fate” that he would die by his own son. But this Oracle was not true because the king’s death was by highway robbers. He informs the new King Oedipus to show him an example and to not be feared because he had his own beliefs. He believed that whatever God has planned, “he shows to us himself”(836). Furthermore, he tells this story to him because he and King […]